Ginni Thomas, the far-right activist and wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, has thanked a religious liberties group for its efforts to block reforms to the court that were designed to address ethical violations of the justices’ rights, including her husband’s.
A new recording obtained by the investigative website ProPublica and the watchdog Documented reveals a July email in which Ginni Thomas thanked the First Liberty Institute for fighting Supreme Court reforms. She specifically referenced proposals from White House President Joe Biden aimed at reining in wayward justices on the nation’s highest court, of which her husband is the prime example.
“I can’t express enough appreciation for your response to the Biden bid for the Supreme Court. Many were so depressed by R’s lack of response.[epublican]“S and conservatives,” she said.
She wrote in capital letters and added, “You have filled the sails of many judges. Let me just tell you, THANK YOU SO, SO, SO MUCH.”
The email was read by First Liberty Institute president Kelly Shackelford during a July 31 phone call with the group’s donors. He said the email was written that same day by Ginni Thomas.
Two days earlier, Biden had called for sweeping changes to the court, including term limits for the nine justices and an ethics code that would be enforced by an outside body. Under current arrangements, the justices are subject to a voluntary code that they individually oversee.
In an op-ed in the Washington Post , the US president explained why he believed a stricter ethics code was needed now. He pointed to “scandals involving multiple judges” that had damaged public confidence in the court, including “undisclosed gifts to judges” and “conflicts of interest related to the January 6 insurrectionists.”
Biden didn’t name names, but Clarence Thomas has been implicated in both types of ethically questionable behavior. ProPublica has exposed the lavish international travel the judge has enjoyed thanks to Republican megadonor Harlan Crow.
A conflict of interest regarding the January 6, 2021 storming of the US Capitol by Donald Trump’s supporters has also been revealed by the House committee investigating the insurrection. It showed that Ginni Thomas was deeply involved in efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in the run-up to January 6, and wrote several messages to then-White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows as the plot unfolded.
When the Supreme Court had to rule on Trump’s request that White House documents that later contained messages from Ginni Thomas not be released to the House committee, only one justice sided with Trump: Clarence Thomas.
First Liberty Institute is an influential player in right-wing legal circles. With a $25 million income, it has regularly argued cases before the Supreme Court calling for greater inclusion of religion in the public sphere.
Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson worked as an attorney for the group and called Shackelford a mentor.
